Fight of Flight

Fight of Flight

When is it “time” to re-engage in life? What does that look like? If one is to move forward, to take flight, it requires an emotional furthering from both the pain and the memory. Shira shares her struggle and apprehension in this series entitled, “Fight of flight.” Common black birds articulate this push and pull in their gestures. Often seen by city dwellers as ominous and maligned, these black crows are viewed as desperate and lonely. At times, they are even feared. For Shira, these birds echo the dark, conflicted feelings that arise as a mourner attempts to reclaim a sense of living…. guilt, darkness, desperation but also, resourcefulness and freedom. It is far easier to bury one’s head in the sand than to stretch out one’s wings in the hopes that they still remember how to fly. The struggle to hold on or engage is exceptionally conflicting. Living or “moving on” is heart wrenching. Each conscious or unconscious step forward cements that the departed belongs to the past and that the mourner still lives. Time ousts reluctant movement forward. Slowly, it becomes apparent that permanent stagnancy is impossible for the living. To survive and thrive, one has no other choice than to find the oxygen, move out of the confines of grief and take a chance on life.